Tag Archives: COP

Background story: The majority of our blog posts deals with CSR topics; we write about the latest developments in this field and try to relate it to a company’s daily business. Our background stories have a different perspective: Here, we explain trends, scientific background and societal implications of corporate sustainability – sometimes with a personal touch.

You already have heard this acronym at work, and even came across a CSR report, and you will hear even more. Indeed, CSR reporting is growing.

CSR reporting is a communication tool on dedicated topics.

You may wonder: what is CSR reporting? There are different scientific and accepted definitions. Our definition is: any documentation related to the company’s management and performance regarding social and environmental topics that is disclosed publicly, and which aims at informing the stakeholders of how the companies manage the impacts towards them.

A stakeholder is said to be any party affected by the organization’s operations: shareholders, customers, suppliers, employees, local communities, civil society, industry, government… CSR reporting is then a tool to communicate the organization’s efforts to the impacted stakeholders.

We identified some of the main CSR reporting schemes

To bring more value to your reporting, you can use reporting standards and schemes. Although there are many CSR schemes, standards, ratings, we chose to focus on the ones which are leading in terms of influence and companies participating and which are not-for-profit organizations. The following list is then not exhaustive.

Regarding environmental reporting, you can choose to answer the CDP questionnaire, on water, climate change, or forest management. CDP[1] (Carbon Disclosure Project) is an NGOs collecting environmental data to ensure transparency to decision-makers like investors or clients.

To structure your CSR report, you can opt for two options: use the framework suggested by the United Global Compact, or use the GRI (Global Reporting Initiative) Guidelines.

When you adhere to the UNGC 10 principles[2], you have then to report your progress on a Communication On Progress. This can be a good idea for beginners, as this communication offers a structure which is not too much stringent.

For more experienced reporters we will suggest to use GRI Guidelines[3], where companies can identify the topics which are the most relevant for them and their stakeholders, and then report specific indicators accordingly (see our blog article for more information: https://blog.dfge.de/2015/11/25/understand-gri-in-2-minutes/).

CSR reporting has grown steadily over the past fifteen years

Over the past decade, CSR reporting has become mainstream. The figures show that the use of internationally recognized standards and schemes is steadily growing. This can be explained by the fact that these initiatives are multi-stakeholder, hence they are more objective than a stand-alone reporting. They also provide guidance and structure which can help the company identify gaps to improve on some areas.

It means that companies have an advantage to report through these schemes: they are of interest for investors, clients, and other stakeholders.

What are the next trends in CSR reporting?

We believe that reporting will increasingly focus on sectorial-specific issues. Indeed, now that the general framework is somehow set and recognized by organizations, some more specific information can be added.

For instance, the Telecommunications sector is faced with the problematic of conflict minerals. Electronics companies now report on how they implement due diligence process in their supply chain and declare if they are conflict-free for the following materials: gold, tin, tantalum, tungsten. A dedicated guidance is provided by the CFSI (Conflict Free Sourcing Initiatives).[4]

We also think that more and more SMEs will report their CSR progress – as bigger companies will increase their pressure on suppliers to take the next step and report along the whole supply chain.

DFGE can guide you through your reporting process. Don’t hesitate to contact us for more information at info@dfge.de or consult our website.

DFGE – Institute for Energy, Ecology and Economy is happy to share its second CSR/sustainability report, which takes the shape of a Communication On Progress (COP).

What is a Communication On Progress (COP)?

In 2015, DFGE produced its first Communication On Progress, a document showing the targets, the actions implemented to reach the targets and the measurement of outcomes for four sustainability issues: Human rights, Labor Practices, Environment and Anti-corruption.

These issues are listed under the 10 United Nations Global Compact principles.

Companies who commit to the United Nations Global Compact need to issue this Communication on Progress on a yearly basis. This document can be considered as the CSR or Sustainability report of the company.

What can be the main highlights?

For each topic, companies can explain which risks they have identified and on which basis, set related targets and formalize commitments in this sense. For instance, DFGE committed to promote UNGC and CSR even more, hoping to have at least one additional partner taking part in this international initiative.

Then, organizations can describe their actions and specify their scope of application, their purpose, etc. For instance, DFGE of course assessed its own carbon footprint to identify sources of emissions that lead to take new commitments and set new targets.

Finally, a measurement of outcomes enables stakeholders to understand the progress of the organization in each domain. For example, DFGE committed in 2015 to formalize hiring processes and to implement appraisal interviews, and in 2016 it was reported that these targets were met.

What are the benefits of such submission?

As a sustainability solution provider, DFGE wants to uphold and support CSR/sustainability international standards. For any company, it is an internationally recognized tool that can help disclose information to stakeholders in an easy way. Indeed, the Communication On Progress offers flexibility as the principles can be adapted to any company according to its size, sector, location, corporate culture. It is also a tool that helps improving sustainability management thanks to the goal-setting and reviewing.

As a participant of the UN Global Compact, DFGE publishes annual “Communication of Progress” reports. The 2015 report is now available for download (German), and also listed in the UN GC database.

In the CoP reports, companies describe the current situation, measures taken and progress made in the fields of human rights, labour standards, environment and anti-corruption. Through its wide scope and clear requirements, the CoP report can serve as a good introduction to sustainability reporting (learn more).